Evaluations of outcome sequences

We extend the literature on intertemporal choice by investigating how posse ssion of knowledge related to the present value of future outcomes (PV know ledge) affects the extent to which individuals weight certain attributes wh en evaluating outcome sequences. While PV-knowledgeable individuals can asc ribe value to attributes according to their PV relevance (or irrelevance), unknowledgeable individuals cannot do so. Such knowledge, therefore, likely interacts with, outcome-sequence attributes to affect the extent to which individuals exhibit impatience when evaluating outcome sequences. The main experimental findings indicate that higher PV knowledge increases the exten t to which individuals value impatience (as opposed to improvement). Howeve r, these findings also reinforce a need to distinguish among impatience, im provement, and PV because some higher PV knowledge participants willingly s acrifice PV while exhibiting impatience (while others do so in order to gai n improvement). Overall, PV considerations appear central, but not determin ative, in higher PV-knowledgeable individuals' evaluations of outcome seque nces. (C) 2000 Academic Press.